


This isn't a date.

by ERASAMA



Category: Kamen Rider - All Media Types, Kamen Rider Ex-Aid
Genre: Enemies to Lovers, M/M, Romantic Fluff, cafe date, motorcycle riding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:20:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28295922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ERASAMA/pseuds/ERASAMA
Summary: Kuroto convinces Kiriya to bring him to a nice patisserie. It's definitely not a date.
Relationships: Dan Kuroto/Kujou Kiriya
Kudos: 5





	This isn't a date.

**Author's Note:**

> I didn't expect to write something so long. It's a little under 6k words, which is a new milestone for me in terms of a word count for a one-shot.
> 
> I hope my writing has improved since my last work. I intend to work harder, maybe spend more time refining my works. Feedback is always appreciated. I hope you enjoy this work.

It had been years since Dan Masamune had been dealt with. With Dan Kuroto’s cooperation with CR, dealing with the Bugster virus wasn’t so much of a challenge than it used to be.  
Of course, there were still some hang-ups due to the consistent stubbornness that plagued the self-proclaimed God.  
Sometimes this stubbornness was too much for even Poppy to handle.

The self-proclaimed God could keep quiet if he wanted to, especially since he liked to focus on work when he wasn’t busy pestering Poppy, Emu, or Kiriya on the rare occasions wherein he would be around.  
Today happened to be one of those occasions.

The coroner who would often be busy with developing further research regarding the Bugster virus vaccine made frequent yet short visits to CR. It was quite rare of him to stick around for longer than he should.  
He couldn’t stand being in the same room as Kuroto. The annoying God would tease Kiriya when he was given the chance, and it wasn’t to say that Kiriya wasn’t used to it, he was far too familiar with how Kuroto acted, he just wasn’t fond of that condescending tone he often used around him.  
You’d think that a few years of putting up with a mild inconvenience such as Dan Kuroto would simmer down, but it’s surprising how the self-proclaimed God can find new ways to be annoying.

And unfortunately for the coroner, Emu and Poppy had to tend to yet another patient. The tablet that Kuroto was left in was hastily put into Kiriya’s hands for the time being, all he wanted was a nice mug of coffee, laced with several packets of creamer and sugar.  
Not even the additives could counter the bitterness he tasted from the coffee, now that he knew he had to play babysitter.

“What’s wrong, Lazer?” Dark eyes gaze upon the coroner through the tablet’s screen, a handsome man forms a condescending expression on his face as he perches his head on the back of his palm, his cheek gently squeezing against his hand.  
Was this an attempt at acting cute, or was he just being natural? Who knows.

“What do you mean what’s wrong? You know exactly what’s wrong, Kami.” A dismissive momentary glare was accompanied by a loud sip of coffee.  
Kuroto tilts his head slightly, feigning ignorance. He knew full well that Kiriya found his presence unpleasant, but he enjoyed playing dumb “Whatever do you mean?”  
That tone could only make Kiriya sigh, following up with an expression of annoyance. He sets the half-empty mug down before picking up the tablet, shaking it around, causing a tremor within the tiny prison.  
“What the… Hey! What was that for?!” Kuroto exclaimed as he fell onto the floor, he proceeded to crawl back up into his seat, fixing his messed hair.  
“You were being annoying,” Kiriya sneered right at the screen, Kuroto’s cheeky expression returned in no time, knowing that he was succeeding in irritating the coroner.  
“Easily annoyed, much? You’ve never changed,” Kuroto gives a thoughtful expression, pouting slightly.

It’s hard to believe that Kiriya had put up coexisting with Kuroto for a few years now. Strangely enough, Kiriya never really wanted to get rid of the annoying God, as much as he had expressed his disliking towards him.

“Like you’ve changed, you’ve always been annoying.”  
Kuroto shrugged “Maybe you just don’t have thick enough skin.”  
Kiriya could only roll his eyes in response, he set the tablet down with a sigh before shifting out of his seat. The expression on Kuroto’s face had changed, curious as to what Kiriya was doing, where he was going to go. Was he leaving him behind?

His suspicions were confirmed when Kiriya picked up the mug, chugging down the rest of the coffee before putting it in the sink. As he was about to leave for the door, the sound of a desperate voice escaped Kuroto’s throat “Wait, where are you going?”  
“Away, obviously.” Kiriya stops in his tracks, turning his head around slightly to give one last glance at Kuroto who was trapped within, his hands wrapping around the purple neon bars, an oddly upset expression on his face, like a puppy begging for a treat.

Upon seeing the upset expression on the often arrogant maniac’s face didn’t exactly make Kiriya feel any better about himself. He cursed that humane part of him for being empathetic.  
The coroner let out an irritated sigh before making his way back to the tablet that sat on the desk, the expression on Kuroto’s face shifted to a cheeky smile as he saw Kiriya walking back to him.  
“What do you want?” The tone in the coroner’s voice was one of pity and defeat than irate.

At this point, Kuroto was grinning from ear to ear. He seemed thoughtful for a moment, he did want something from the coroner but wasn’t sure how to ask him outright. Besides, how could he ever ask someone like Kiriya to spend time with him?  
“Isn’t it obvious? I want out.” Straightforward and demanding, he folded his arms in a way that made him seem serious about his request, but Kiriya wasn’t buying it.

The coroner picked up the tablet, squinting at Kuroto with skepticism on his face as he asked “Do you know what you’re asking of me?”  
“Of course I do, that’s why I’m asking you.”  
Kiriya tried not to let Kuroto’s cheeky expression get to him, but it was incredibly frustrating as Kuroto’s face was practically squeezing against the screen. Kiriya wondered what the maniac was going to gain out of this.

“What do you mean by that?”  
“Asking Emu or Poppy would serve no use, they’d just give me a stern lecture and leave me be, which is no fun at all,” Kuroto exaggerates self-pity as he spoke, in an attempt to poke at Kiriya’s empathy, which seemed to work slightly “You, on the other hand…”   
Kuroto turned to Kiriya with a mischievous look on his face, “You wouldn’t let me down, would you?” His head was practically popping out of the screen, reaching out between the two neon bars that kept the rest of him behind the screen; his face was close enough to the coroner’s to where it made him blush out of embarrassment.  
He scoffed at Kuroto’s statement, leaning the tablet further away from his face, keeping Kuroto at a fair distance “What makes you say that? Not that I have any power to convince the Ministry of Health to let you out, Hell, not like you’ve done anything to deserve it.”

Kuroto frowned for a moment at Kiriya’s statement, but the frown slowly faded back into a neutral expression as he retorted “Well, believe it or not, I can let myself free whenever I want…”

Kuroto practically squeezes through the bars, jumping out of the screen with ease. Kiriya was horrified at the display, knowing that Kuroto could free himself at any moment to cause mayhem if he so pleased.  
“You seem surprised,” Kuroto smirked, “These shackles are nothing to a God such as myself.”  
“Okay… And, what does this have to do with asking me of all people, if you could have just walked out of here at any moment… What do you want?” Kiriya kept a good distance away from the other man, it wasn’t to say he was particularly afraid of him, but he couldn’t let his guard down.

Kuroto wasn’t amused at this, disappointed that Kiriya could act so cold and distant. A sigh escaped his lips as he approached the coroner, giving a reassuring pat on his shoulder, “Come on now, I won’t bite. Wouldn’t you do me a kindness and accompany me?” Kuroto pulls out his phone, showing an image of what seemed to be a patisserie accompanied by a description “I overheard Brave talking about a new patisserie opening and I’m keen on having some dessert.”  
Kiriya could feel a hand move down the back of his pants as Kuroto leaned in, grasping at the other man’s wallet, “You’re the one with the wallet.”  
This guy doesn’t have a sense of personal space?! The coroner grabbed his adversary’s wrist, shoving his hand away from that area of his body, the blush on his face was noticeable, and he was considerably embarrassed as he saw the corner of Kuroto’s mouth curl upwards into a knowing smirk. Damn pervert.  
“You can blame law enforcement for freezing my account all you want, but it’s not gonna get a strawberry parfait into my mouth,” Kuroto folds his arms stubbornly, expecting Kiriya to agree to his little request.

Kiriya seemed to be considering something, it was uncertain if he was considering Kuroto’s request, or considering punching him in the face instead.  
Worst case scenario, Kuroto would run amok and the blame would be put on Kiriya for not being good enough of a God-wrangler. That wouldn’t look very good on him, wouldn’t it?

It didn’t seem like he had many options.

“Come on,” the pouty expression returned, but Kuroto had to exaggerate it. Of course he had to. “You were the one who came running back to me~”  
Kuroto couldn’t help but poke the bear that was Kiriya’s patience, walking behind Kiriya to put his arms around him, “Scared of taking your favorite God on a little date?”  
Kiriya jolted away from Kuroto in an instant, 'A date?! Is this guy out of his fucking mind?!'  
Kuroto could only giggle at Kiriya’s irritated expression, he seemed a bit flustered as well, struggling to compose himself, especially after such a request.

Kiriya couldn’t see a clear way out of this either. If he didn’t go through with this, Kuroto would probably find some way else to annoy him.   
'Better to just get this over with… What the fuck ever. At least I’ll be getting a nice treat out of this.'  
“Fine,” Kiriya sighed in defeat. Kuroto’s face noticeably lit up in excitement, but the expression shifted once Kiriya continued to speak “But it’s not a date.” He muttered, “This is anything but a damn date…”

'Whatever.' Kuroto thought. There was a tinge of irritation he felt in his chest, he wasn’t sure why he felt the way he did at that moment, but he quickly shrugged it off as Kiriya led him out of the room.

“The ministry’s gonna be pissed if they find out… Got any way to disguise yourself? Can’t have the face of Dan Kuroto walking around in public,” the coroner made sure to walk behind the other man to keep a good eye on him.  
“I’m not stupid, Lazer. Of course I have something up my sleeve,” Kuroto folds his arms as they both walk into the elevator.  
“Yeah? Well, what is it?” As the elevator doors close behind them, Kiriya presses the button that would take them to the ground floor.  
“Oh, you won’t see it. Being a Bugster is convenient, you should know this,” Kuroto smiled with pride as if he was proud of himself for creating something like the Bugster virus, “I can change my appearance easily, and I can choose who can and can’t see the disguise. You, my dear Lazer, will have the enjoyment of seeing my wonderful face.  
How unfortunate that the rest of the populace won’t have such a luxury.”  
'Great.' Kiriya thought, 'Guess I’ll have to survive the evening having to look at your face…'

What the coroner didn’t want to admit to himself was that he didn’t exactly mind.

Although, he did feel a tad bit uneasy throughout the excursion from the lobby out to the parking lot. The feeling of leading a criminal to a night out wasn’t exactly the best.

“So, you’re gonna take me for a ride?” Kuroto drags his fingers across the smooth surface of the yellow Honda CRF250L. His lips curled up forming a soft smile, the ex-CEO found it cute how much of a bike nerd the coroner was.  
Perhaps he made the right choice of giving him the Bakusou Bike gashat all those years ago.

Kiriya sighed, putting a hand on his hip. His free hand moved to his side, feeling the outline of the keys to his bike in the pocket of his ripped jeans. “Y’know, I don’t just let anyone ride with me.”  
A cheeky smirk slid onto Kuroto’s face “Oh come on now, aren’t I special enough to ride with you?”  
At this point, Kuroto was just poking at the coroner, thinking that he was endearing but instead to Kiriya, he was just annoying.

A sigh escaped the coroner’s lips, “Fine, whatever,” he slid his hand into his pocket to fish out the keys. A delightful smile spread on Kuroto’s face as he slid himself onto the passenger seat of the bike, right behind Kiriya.

“I don’t have an extra helmet, you’re gonna have to hold on tight,” Kiriya warned as he put his helmet on. It wasn’t as if he cared about Kuroto’s safety to any capacity, perhaps it was just out of courtesy that the driver should be cautious of the passenger’s safety.  
Either way, a similar strange feeling, much like from before could be felt in the pit of Kuroto’s chest, it wasn’t often that the coroner expressed any form of care for him.

It was odd, but it wasn’t so much of a bad thing.

As Kiriya revved up the motorbike, the exhaust pipe began to rumble behind them. Before they took off, Kiriya felt a pair of arms wrap tight around his waist. “Hey, what the--” he jolted, turning around to look at Kuroto who leaned against Kiriya so very nonchalantly.  
“What? You told me to hold on tight~” Kuroto’s chin tucking against the coroner’s shoulder wasn’t what either of them was expecting, but that was what’s happening.

'Whatever,' Kiriya sighed, 'I don’t have time to argue. I’ll just deal with it. Easier to get it over with than to argue…'  
Kuroto was surprised at the lack of a retort but didn’t want to push his luck any further.

The journey was silent as they rode under the orange sky, Kiriya’s eyes fixated on the road while Kuroto seemed to be sticking closer to the other, closer than he was to begin with; and it seemed like neither of them even noticed.  
Kuroto was busy admiring the beautiful sunset, one that he hadn’t seen in such a long time.

All that time being trapped in the stuffy prison, cold and alone with nothing but his laptop and that shitty lamp and the bulb that was about to burn out, it was starting to get old.  
Sure, he had the choice to annoy passersby that made the active choice to pester him, but what was happening at that very moment, holding onto the waist of a man who probably hates his guts while staring at a beautiful sunset; it made the tiny bit of humanity that lingered within him flicker like a dying ember that was coming back to life.

It wasn’t long after he snapped out of his thoughts as the vehicle came to a halt, pulling into a parking space.  
“Alright, get off.” Kiriya didn’t seem forceful as all he did was take his helmet off, turn around, and looked at Kuroto who seemed to just be clinging onto the coroner like a child and his little plush toy.

With haste, Kuroto pried himself away from Kiriya, albeit there was a hint of reluctance in his actions, but it didn’t seem like Kiriya noticed.

However, what he did notice was the constant clinginess during the entire ride. Oddly enough, he found it a little endearing how much Kuroto clung to him. He couldn’t help but think about the way his arms wrapped around his waist, his cheek practically sticking to the side of his helmet.  
'Was he afraid of riding on a motorcycle?' Kiriya snickered at the thought, to which Kuroto responded with a perplexed expression.  
“What’s so funny?” Kuroto folded his arms, wondering what it could be that Kiriya was laughing at.  
“Nothing, nothing. Don’t worry about it.” Kiriya waved him off as he got off the bike, leaving Kuroto to pout for a moment before following behind.

Having to walk a little further down the street would seem like a problem normally, but Kiriya felt a little lighter than usual. It was strange, but he wasn’t about to complain about not feeling uneasy.  
On top of that, Kuroto seemed quieter; perhaps it was because he was out of his cage for, presumably the first time in a long time, assuming he hasn’t made any other escapes, knowing that he had the ability to do so.

Kiriya took a short moment to wonder why the mischievous game developer wanted to bring him on a date, but he’d rather save the questions for later.  
The fragrant scent of tasty sweets wafted towards the pair as they closed in on the patisserie.  
Kiriya noticed the smile on Kuroto’s face as he took in a deep breath, the notable scent of strawberry dessert lingered in the air.  
'I wonder if he likes strawberries…'  
Kiriya found himself wondering about what Kuroto liked.  
'Maybe I could get something nice for him?'  
He snickered to himself again before entering the nicely decorated establishment.

The sight of strawberry pastries gave Kuroto a feeling of nostalgia, which was rare since he was never fond of lingering on thoughts of the past, but it did bring him back to a birthday celebration he had. One of the only ones he had in his lifetime.  
His parents were always too busy for him. Everyone was always too busy for him.  
But not this time.

Kiriya watched as Kuroto looked eagerly at the display case filled with beautifully decorated treats.  
'Take your time, I guess.' Looks like the coroner forgot how much he wanted to get this over with quickly. There was a sense of innocence in the way Kuroto was staring at the treats. Being cooped up in a cage probably wasn’t ideal, even for Kuroto.

Kiriya’s attention then snapped towards the lady behind the counter who was trying to get his attention.  
“Excuse me, sir. If your friend is having trouble with what to choose, we do have a few recommendations.”  
Kiriya blinked twice, a warm feeling filling his chest, was he blushing too?  
“I’m sorry?” 'Either she referred to him as my boyfriend or I was just hearing things…'  
Awkwardly, the lady repeated herself “I… I said, if your friend is having trouble, we have some recommendations he could try.”  
'Ah. I was hearing things.  
How awkward.'

Kiriya took a glance at Kuroto who seemed to be set on what he was going to order. He turned to the lady behind the counter, a polite smile on his face as he spoke “I’d like to have a strawberry shortcake and a strawberry parfait, please.”  
It’s hard to believe that Kuroto had such a graceful side to him. Then again, he was a businessman. He was no stranger to being charismatic.  
The lady nodded, her fingers seemed to dance on the keyboard in front of her, calculating the total for the bill.  
“I’d like a cup of white coffee, please,” typical Kujo Kiriya.

Once the total of the bill was added up, Kiriya got the payment over with. It wasn’t long after the order was completed as well since the treats were usually pre-made. The coffee didn’t take long to make either.  
Of course, Kiriya was the one who had to carry the tray while Kuroto walked leisurely to an empty table for two that was located by a window that overlooked the street.

Kiriya set the tray down onto the white tablecloth that was draped over a circular wooden table before he slid into the seat on the opposite side of the man who he accompanied throughout the evening.

Kuroto wasted no time to dig into the appetizing strawberry parfait, the tall cold glass that filled to the brim with strawberry and creamy goodness was quickly consumed by the self-proclaimed God.  
Kiriya just sat in front of the other man, patiently sipping on his coffee as he watched how much Kuroto seemed to be enjoying himself.

The smile on his face was different from that shit-eating grin he usually wore, it wasn’t at all irritating to look at. In fact, it was endearing more than anything. The blushing light from the lamppost outside made his smile look warmer.  
So warm that the feeling of warmth in Kiriya’s chest returned. It was as if he was a hollow shell filled with butterflies that danced around inside him vigorously.

But Kiriya was sure that it wasn’t the feeling of being in love. He could never be in love with someone like Dan Kuroto…  
Could he?

The more he thought about it, the ache in his head started to grow.  
'Yeah, that’s right. All he ever gives me is a headache. That’s all there is to it. I’m just doing this guy a favor so he’ll shut the fuck up… That’s all.'

There was no love, Kiriya remembered that much.

“Hey, did you hear me at all?” Kuroto seemed to be waving a hand in front of Kiriya’s face, in an attempt to get his attention.  
“What do you want now?” Kiriya places the cup of coffee down on the coaster.  
“Sheesh, you don’t have to be so aggressive, I just wanted to offer you some of my cake,” perhaps the arrogant self-proclaimed God wanted to try to be nice. He seemed more flustered to do so, strangely enough. There was a light tone of blush that spread across his face as he turned away, avoiding eye-contact. 'Should’ve known better than to offer that jerk my kindness… Then again…' His thoughts came to a halt, he was wrong to have thought that the coroner would have warmed up to him at this point.

The disappointed expression on Kuroto’s face was clear to Kiriya, and the feeling of guilt was clear in his mind too.  
But he didn’t curse his humanity for being so empathetic, he cursed himself for being so inconsiderate of the other’s feelings.  
Perhaps he didn’t even consider that Kuroto, someone so heartless and arrogant would have a softer side.

“Sorry,” Kiriya stuttered awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment “I shouldn’t have been so rude.”  
Kuroto responded with a stubborn sigh, the blush on his face faded away slightly “I’ll accept your apology…  
If you accept my cake.”  
A smile crept across Kuroto’s face, which made Kiriya slightly perplexed as he wondered why Kuroto even needed to point out if he would accept the cake.  
Why wouldn’t he? It’s cake.

“Sure, I’ll have a bite. I’m the one who paid for this anyway,” as Kiriya reached forward to grab the dessert fork on the opposite side of the table, the touch of Kuroto’s bony fingers stopped him from grabbing the fork.  
“Ah, ah, ah. You misunderstand,” Kuroto smirked, using his free hand to take the fork, scooping up a piece of the fluffy strawberry shortcake.

'Of course, there was a catch.' Kiriya sighed to himself. 'There always is.'

Kuroto continued to smile at Kiriya’s slight frustration, waving the piece of cake in front of him. “Well?” Kuroto raised a brow, waiting for Kiriya to be fed by him.  
He could feel the temperature in the coroner’s hand rise. There didn’t seem to be an ounce of resistance when Kuroto was practically holding onto the other’s hand. He found it strange how Kiriya didn’t pull his hand away, the feeling of the coroner’s fist under Kuroto’s hand had a certain warmth to it.  
It was nice.

Meanwhile, Kiriya continued to stare at the piece of cake that was pierced by a stainless steel fork. Was he really going to let Kuroto feed him like this?  
He brought his gaze upwards slightly to look at Kuroto who happened to be staring back. There was a glint in his dark eyes that seemed to tug at Kiriya’s heartstrings as if he still had any internal organs.  
The look in the other man’s eyes coupled with the warmth radiating from Kuroto’s hand that covered over his was enough for Kiriya to decide it wouldn’t hurt to entertain the offer.

Silently, Kiriya leaned forward, his jaw lowering to allow the piece of cake to enter his mouth.  
Kuroto couldn’t help but smile at the adorable display in front of him. His fingers gently caressed the coroner’s knuckles, he could feel the differing texture from Kiriya’s skin and his own. His being smooth and soft whilst Kiriya’s being rough and worn.  
Is it because he works on his bike? Kuroto assumed Kiriya worked on his bike a lot during his spare time, the thought of a sweaty, tank-top wearing, grease-stained Kiriya could make him blush.

Kuroto’s little fantasies could only go so far; his thoughts soon came to a halt as he felt Kiriya’s hand under his slip away.  
Instinctively, Kuroto couldn’t help but reach out slightly as if he wasn’t happy that Kiriya’s hand slipped away as if he’d lost something precious to him.  
Kiriya, however, didn’t seem to notice the little gesture, which was probably for the better. It would be embarrassing if Kuroto revealed a more vulnerable, softer side to him. As if he hasn’t already.

“Cake was good,” Kiriya spoke, licking the top row of his teeth to catch the lingering taste of the delicious cake “Might get some for myself…”  
Kuroto dismissed the other’s self-monologuing to dig into the rest of the cake slice, but it wasn’t long after he had to pause once again as a familiar face approached the table.

“Coroner?” A familiar monotone voice spoke.  
Kiriya turned to look at Hiiro Kagami who just so happened to stop by the patisserie, which was no surprise as the prodigious surgeon did have a fondness for decorated pastry.  
“Hey, doc,” Kiriya felt beads of sweat forming on the back of his neck. He hoped that Kuroto had made it so that the surgeon couldn’t see past the disguise.  
The look on Hiiro’s face confirmed that he did not recognize the man sitting in front of Kiriya, which was an incredible relief.

If word had gotten out that Kiriya knowingly let Dan Kuroto roam free…  
'Boy, would I be in big trouble,' Kiriya thought.

“It’s a surprise to see you here,” Hiiro commented, the tone in his voice was unchanging as the monotony persisted “You seem to be on a date with…”  
Hiiro turned his gaze towards the other man that sat in front of Kiriya.

Kiriya could only stutter out a made-up name, due to how frantic he was “Reito…! His… His name is Reito, but we’re not…”  
Kiriya was shortly cut off by Hiiro’s dismissive nature, he nodded in understanding as he bid farewell to both ‘Reito’ and Kiriya, leaving the coroner to remain in a frantic state, and the other to laugh at Kiriya’s struggle.

“Reito? Was that the best you could come up with?” Kuroto snickered.  
“Shut up! Like you could’ve come up with anything better… God, I should’ve just said…” Kiriya pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, blood rising up to his cheeks, the tips of his ears were swelling up with red.  
'How cute,' Kuroto thought, shaking his head as he stuck the last piece of cake into his mouth.  
“Said what, that this isn’t a date?” There was a tad bit of reluctance despite the condescending and snappy tone in Kuroto’s voice as he spoke, a strange ache in his chest followed soon after.  
But that ache was nothing to a God such as himself.  
Was it?

“Yeah,” Kiriya responded with reluctance as well, it could be that he was flustered from the encounter with Hiiro, or maybe he was hesitant in admitting that this was a date or whatever’, as he would put it.  
“This… Definitely isn’t a date,” Kiriya did his best to regain his composure, running his rough palms over his flushed face, a prolonged sigh escaping his lips.  
The blush slowly faded away, but Kiriya still didn’t want to make eye contact with Kuroto.  
He couldn’t bring himself to look at him.

The two of them silently agreed that their little escapade was over as they slid out of their seats.  
The genius game developer waited outside the establishment whilst Kiriya seemed to be getting some treats for himself.

The bell that hung from the doorframe rang as Kiriya swung the door open, a pair of boxes that presumably contained decorated cake was held steadily in the coroner’s hands.  
The stroll back to the bike was silent. This time, Kuroto trailed along behind Kiriya.

Oddly enough, the coroner wasn’t worried about Kuroto running off; thankfully, he was right to not worry about anything.  
Thankfully, the self-proclaimed God didn’t run off.

After tucking the boxes of cake away in the secure compartment in the side of the well-maintained bike, the two men got on and soon departed from the area.

At this point, it was nighttime. Streetlamps illuminated the road and the sidewalks, rooms within buildings lit up; amidst the cold night, the light emitting from the apartment buildings seemed to make the atmosphere feel warmer than it was.  
A handful of stars cluttered the night sky, the moon was full too.

Kuroto hadn’t seen the moon in such a long time. Peering up at the sky sent a wave of nostalgia over him.  
He leans forward with reluctance, once again wrapping his arms around his driver’s waist. He was sure to be gentle so as to not disturb the other man.  
He proceeded to tuck his cheek against Kiriya’s back, the position he sat in would seem uncomfortable normally, but something about sticking by to someone, physically, brought the lonely game developer some sense of unfamiliar yet calming comfort.  
He felt lucky that Kiriya hadn’t thrown him off the bike.

It wasn’t long before the two of them arrived at the hospital once again. The empty parking spot where the motorcycle that members of CR would use was empty, signifying that Emu and Poppy hadn’t yet returned.  
'Good,' Kiriya let out a sigh of relief as he got off his bike. 'There’s still time.'

The coroner and his adversary made a quiet journey back down to CR, they were sure to avoid being seen by anyone. Sure, it wasn’t Dan Kuroto who was walking around, free from his prison, but a stranger at the hospital did prove to be somewhat odd.  
Kuroto was lucky not to be questioned by a receptionist. Who knows how persistent they’d be.

“Well,” Kiriya sighed, gesturing towards the arcade cabinet “Time for you to head on back.”  
Kuroto sighed, feeling defeated. It’s not like he was really trapped, per se, but he wasn’t fond of living in a cold, dark cell.  
'Whatever.' Kuroto rolled his shoulders, easing his tense nerves before turning around to head back into his cell.

“Uh,” an awkward voice escaped Kiriya’s lips as he seemed to be hesitant in saying something.  
Kuroto turned around to see that Kiriya seemed to be fidgeting, perhaps trying to formulate a sentence that couldn’t seem to come out. Eventually, it did.  
“I just wanted to let you know that the other cake in the fridge is yours,” Kiriya couldn’t help but blush in embarrassment, “If you want it, that is.”  
Did he really go out of his way to buy another slice of cake for someone he was supposed to hate?  
He had already paid for the previous treats, what’s one more gonna do?

The small gesture was enough to delight Kuroto to where he was grinning ear to ear. At first, it seemed like a genuine smile, but it felt more of an arrogant one once Kuroto let out a condescending sigh.  
Kiriya rolled his eyes, a sarcastic smirk curled up on the corner of his lips, awaiting whatever phrase was going to slither out of Kuroto’s mouth.  
“Your God accepts this kind offer,” Kuroto stepped forward, crouching down slightly to close the gap between their height difference. One of his hands even pat on the coroner’s head like he was a young boy being praised.  
“You done?” The sarcastic smile on Kiriya’s face started to seem a little tired, perhaps due to the stale gag Kuroto performed. Kiriya was never a fan of whenever the self-proclaimed God’s antics involved their height difference.

Thankfully, Kuroto knew better than to push it even further. Ending on a sour note would prove undesirable for him.

“Well, I suppose this is where you and I part ways for the night.” Kuroto sighed, turning around to slowly slink back into his jail cell that was in the form of an arcade machine.

Unexpectedly, Kuroto felt a firm grip wrap around his wrist. Upon turning around, he felt a warm breath, followed by the feeling of soft flesh colliding against his jaw.

Bugsters didn’t have blood pumping through their veins, and Kuroto wasn’t one to simulate functions similar to a human’s, yet it felt as though he felt like blood was coursing through his veins once again. A part of him still seemed to hang onto one last bit of humanity that was but a mere flickering spark.  
The way he felt towards Kujo Kiriya was proof of that humanity, perhaps.  
He never wanted to acknowledge that part of him, he’d rather let it go, but nobody else made him feel this way. Nobody ever could, nobody except Kujo Kiriya.

“That…” Kuroto was speechless. His face was flushed with red, Kiriya was the same.  
The coroner had a smirk on his face, feeling accomplished at how he was able to catch Kuroto off guard. To be able to see the face of a vulnerable Kuroto was a rare sight to see.

“That was what people are supposed to do after a date, right?”   
Kuroto was still trying to process what had just happened. Between the shoddy attempt at what seemed to be a kiss that landed on his jaw and the acknowledgment that they went on a date. He began to wonder if this was even real.

Kuroto could easily tell fiction from reality, and he knew for certain that this was real.  
He wasted no time in returning the favor, bouncing back from his flustered expression to composing himself. Always wanting to make things a competition between them, Kuroto couldn’t let this end with Kiriya having the last laugh.

“Not quite,” Kuroto spoke as he cleared his throat.  
Kiriya responded with a raised brow, confused as to what Kuroto meant, and how he was able to compose himself so quickly.  
He had no time to think about it, his mind suddenly went blank as a pair of soft lips collided with his.

“You missed,” Kuroto smirked once he pulled away, leaving Kiriya to be stunned.

There was a lingering taste of strawberries and cream.


End file.
